It happened again. Remember a few weeks ago when I included information about a phone call I received from a police officer in Los Angeles, thanking our Marys & Marthas (M & Ms) group for our note to them thanking them for their service to their community?

M & Ms tend to do that, several each month, and November was no different. Each card is started. Then passed around. And signed by those attending. Probably fifteen people this month.

Thus the letter I received on Friday from Police Chief Scott Schubert from the City of Pittsburgh following the mass shooting at a Jewish Synagogue there:

"Dear Friends,

On behalf of all members of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, I would like to thank you for the card you sent following the Tree of Life incident.

"I cannot say enough about the courageous actions of our officers that were involved in such a horrendous event. I was touched to see the many signatures of those offering their well wishes.

"I thank you for your heartfelt support."

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And a note in a Lutheran newsletter, which my sister emailed to me, regarding the California wildfires. The article included a picture of a standing, unharmed cross in the midst of fires all around. Jill wanted us to recall what is happening tragically to many people there. To help if we could. Or pray for those who were hurt and will suffer some of the consequences of the fires for months and years to come:

"For me this picture is not just a heartbreaking reminder of what can happen to the things and people of this world; this is our true hope in the midst of tragedy that cannot be destroyed by anything. God is with us....wants nothing more than for us to see Him through the cross where He draws us to the only place His mercy and forgiveness are found. In this picture, I understand how in the cross we see both the ultimate consequences of our sin in death and the new life we have with Jesus. Our prayers are needed. Pray that the people would turn to Jesus for comfort, assurance, and hope. And may those who are serving on the ground bring Jesus to them......."

~ written by Brandon Merrick of Our Savior Lutheran Church

Paradise, California

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